WKW Roof Rail Systems, LLC plans to close its Battle Creek plant as part of the company's restructuring plan, leaving about 130 local jobs in limbo.

The manufacturer said Monday it has targeted the end of August for the closure. The decision is part of the company's desire to realign some of its operations to "fully utilize the capacity of its remaining facilities in North America, accelerating work already underway to reduce costs and improve competitiveness," the company said.

WKW's facility, which finalizes aluminum parts for American automotive industry customers, will be consolidated into other WKW.automotive operations in Michigan and Alabama with some limited work returning to Germany. WKW said it is planning to move significant business and personnel to its Portage plant, Bowers Manufacturing Co.

The German manufacturer came to Battle Creek in 2014 promising a $23 million investment and bringing 186 jobs to the area. It was a new subsidy of WKW Erbsloeh North America Inc., part of WKW.automotive in Wuppertal, Germany. It outfitted the former Toyota Tsuscho America plant on North Hill Brady Road in the Fort Custer Industrial Park for its local operations.

At the time, the company had a sales office in Troy and a manufacturing facility in Portage, acquired when it purchased Bowers in 2013.

Former Battle Creek Unlimited President and CEO Karl Dehn lauded the move as "great news," telling the Enquirer in 2014 he felt the company "would be a good fit for Battle Creek and bring great new economic impact." BCU's current leader, Marie Briganti, did not immediately return a request for comment.

Battle Creek city commissioners approved a 12-year, $910,772 tax abatement for the company in February 2015. In the company's application for a local property tax break, it said its total investment in the property would be at $54.5 million.

Ted Dearing, Battle Creek assistant city manager for community and economic development, said he planned to review the terms of WKW's tax abatement. Typically, he said, there are various opt-out clauses within the documents that would need to be approved by the commission.